


Stardust Memories

by Pixietails



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: But then this happened, Established Relationship, I just wanted to write something pretty, M/M, and its terrible, fluff and flower crowns, i just wanted to try D:, im sorry voltron fandom, thats literally it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-24
Updated: 2017-01-24
Packaged: 2018-09-19 13:49:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9443957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pixietails/pseuds/Pixietails
Summary: Keith and Lance take a moment to stop and appreciate the beauty around them.  Not everything in space has to be cold and unfamiliar.





	

    It wasn’t water; it wasn’t even close, and yet they both had the uncanny feeling that they were standing in the middle of a rainstorm.  Each sparkling drop fell so gently down that it was almost as though it melted against their bare skin—curiously cool to the touch, yet dry unlike water or ice.  It was what Keith had once imagined stardust to look like, and what Lance had often seen in his dreams.  The sight was breathtaking, and rather than return to the castle the pair had chosen instead to watch the beautiful spectacle unfold.

    The planet had felt more like home than anything else.  Of course there were obvious differences; the periwinkle sky had faded into deep royal purple as the sun went down; the trees shone silver in the rosy moonlight, and seemed to sing softly as the wind whistled through their leaves; the grass gave off the same sheen, but had looked so vibrant and green in the daylight that the pair could almost believe they were back home on earth.  It was a heartening experience, and a devastating blow all the same.

    It wasn’t earth; they were impossibly far from home, and yet the universe was vast and beautiful. 

    Streaks of vari-colored light raced against the shimmering velvet sky, like skipping stones across a still, starry lake.  Keith mentioned that they were likely meteors entering the planet’s atmosphere, but they did not seem to be made of any material he could recognize.  They were crystalline, yet not ice; rock, but something precious.  Their descent brought with them glittering showers of diamond dust; like raindrops against the setting sun.

    Lance was the first to sit down.  The forest they had been exploring had been beautiful, but the star shower in the clearing was more amazing than anything else they had seen.  Small, glimmering flowers sprung up from the grass in great numbers, and Lance was careful not to crush their star-shaped petals as he lay back, arms folded behind his head.  The entire planet was like a painting out of a children’s book, and as much as he missed home, he found himself entirely all too grateful for the experience.

    They should really head back. The others would wonder where they were.

    Just a little longer.  A few more minutes couldn’t hurt.

   Keith sat down beside him, leaning back on his hands to better look up at the sky.  This was a moment just for them, a moment they had to cherish.  For the first time he felt as though he could really just take a few seconds and let himself relax and appreciate the vastness of space and the familiarity of such a planet.  It was true that he had little back on earth, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t just as homesick as the others.  Like the other paladins, he hoped to return one day.  But until then, he needed to be able to appreciate little things.

    Exciting new planets.

    A beautiful meteor shower.

    Pleasant company.

    Never once did they question their own safety.  Never once did they worry that something might be wrong.  A tranquility had wrapped around them like a warm blanket, and there was no need for concern or bickering or any words at all.  They could relax without fear of Zarkon, rest without guilt, and share a space just for themselves without prying eyes.  Such occasions were rare and were not to be squandered.

    A half hour at most.

   Fine dust had collected in Keith’s hair, and Lance couldn’t help but notice the way the wind made each strand twinkle like the glimmering sky above.  The boy had stars in his eyes and the universe running through his veins; it only made sense he would have stardust in his hair as well.  He was  _ meant  _ to be out here, more so than any of them, and initially Lance had felt a pang of envy at that fact.

    Why did he have to feel that way?  It wasn’t  _ always  _ a competition.  They didn’t have to constantly butt heads.  And for a long time Lance had thought that it was only because deep down he believed Keith was better.  

    The better pilot.

    The better fighter.

    The better man.

    But that wasn’t the case.  

    They were both essential, both wonderfully different.  Each paladin had their own strength, and though water and fire were opposing elements, they had learned to work together seamlessly.  Their relationship would never be perfect on any level, and their rivalry would forever exist, but they shared a bond.  A powerful, unbreakable bond.

    Not that Lance would ever willingly admit to that, of course.

   Without a word he sat up and slowly collected a small bunch of white, pale yellow, and soft pink star flowers.  Then, shifting to his knees, he carefully threaded one through Keith’s dark hair.  Once he was satisfied it would stay, he reached for another, only to be stopped by both a strong hand and a disapproving stare.

    “...What are you doing?”

    “Trust me, I have a plan.”

    “You’re just putting flowers in my hair...”

    “Well, yeah;  _ that’s _ the plan.”

    Using Keith’s confusion to his advantage, Lance pulled away and slipped another flower into his hair—only to watch in disappoint as it immediately fell back out.  Growing up he had always seen people wear flowers in their hair on TV, or read about daisy-chains in books, but he’d never attempted a proper one himself.  Oh, sure—he had braided some flowers into his younger sisters’ hair at times, or slipped one behind his ear, but he couldn’t just do that with Keith.  Maybe if he tied the stems together…

    “Okay, hang on, don’t move.  I just need to make a chain or something.   _ Then  _ they’ll stay in.”

    “Wait, you need to use three.  Kind of braid them, or they’ll just fall apart.”

    “I know what I’m doing, okay?  I think I know how to make a flower crown without your help.”

    “But why are you even making one…”

     The question made him pause.  Why  _ was _ he?  A single flower would have been questionable, but an entire crown?   They weren’t at a comfortable stage for Lance to say ‘because you’re stupidly pretty.’  What kind of an answer was that?  Things were still new and uncharted, and while Lance didn’t mind showing affection, he knew better than to press too hard with Keith.  Either the teen would stare blankly, uncomprehending, or he would get flustered and angry.  Sometimes it felt like there was no in between with him.

    Instead of answering, Lance just set to work, braiding the stems of each flower together as he added in more.  Though it was Keith’s suggestion that finally got things in motion, Lance wasn’t about to give him credit and focused solely on his work instead.  He didn’t even realize that Keith had begun to collect his own flowers and start on his own chain.  If he had, he would have noticed the careful attention to color; powder blue, cool lavender, mint green—an entirely different color scheme than his own.  

    Despite Lance’s head start, Keith worked quickly enough to catch up, only losing his chain once or twice in the process.  It was easy enough to fix, and though it was fairly lopsided the finished product was not entirely hideous.  It seemed as though Lance’s attempt had been no better, which was simultaneously something of a relief and a surprise.  Neither crown seemed particularly praiseworthy, but for a first attempt they were hardly disastrous.

    Pleased with his efforts, Lance carefully placed his completed creation on the top of Keith’s head, adjusting it so that it sat evenly.  The action brushed glittering dust out of the other teen’s hair, and once again he found himself drawn to the natural beauty of the planet around them.  The more he thought about it, the more he felt as though the curious downpour was more like Fsnow; it was strong enough to cling to just the right surface, but still delicate enough to melt the moment it reached the ground.

    But he was quickly drawn out of his thoughts as Keith bestowed upon him his own crown.  It was a little big, slipping down over his eyes only once, but Lance soon fixed it so that it could sit comfortably on top of his head.  It was silly, childish even, but enough like home that he couldn’t help but feel a growing warmth in the middle of his chest.  Why couldn’t they have more time like this?

    He needed this.

_ They  _ needed this.

    But they couldn’t wait forever.

    The warmth that had settled in his chest seemed to spread throughout his body, making his face feel uncomfortably hot.  It was not an altogether unpleasant feeling, and with enough forced confidence he could carry it off without drawing further attention to himself.  With a (hopefully) self-assured smile, Lance reached out and casually placed his hand over Keith’s, eyes traveling upward once again.  If he had noticed the blush rising on the other’s face he at least had the grace not to comment on it.

    He’d just do that later when he was ready to tease his companion.

   “You know...mine’s  _ totally _ better than yours.”

   “Wha—no it’s not!  You couldn’t even put yours together without my advice!”

   “Well I still had to make it myself!  And it’s definitely better.”

    “I used more flowers than you did; that makes mine better.”

    “It’s too big!  Just how big do you think my head even is?”

    “I didn’t know your head was so small.  Just give it back if you don’t want it.”

    “Hey!  My head is  _ not  _ small.  Maybe your head is small.”

    “Or maybe you just got lucky.”

    “Whatever.  I knew exactly what I was doing.”

    “Okay.  That’s why you needed my help.”

    “Tch.  Yeah, whatever.  I’ll just let you think that, so you don’t feel bad.”

    Just a few more minutes.  It was still too early to go back.


End file.
